City of Miami Commissioner Michelle Spence-Jones, facing criminal charges (detailed by reporter Scott Hiaasen in the Miami Herald today), was removed from office by the Governor on November 13th. The City is spending $200,000 for a special election, a lot of dough when you are having a financial meltdown. All indications are that she will easily be reelected. Governor Crist told the Miami Herald Editorial Board this week that he would suspend her again if she won in the special election. That means her district will be throwing $200,000 of hard earned tax dollars down the drain. I don't pretend to understand Overtown or Liberty City residents and apparently I don't have a clue because this makes absolutely no sense to me.Here is an idea. Why not give voters in her district a cut of the $200,000? The City could divide it up between the 4,000 people who voted for her, on the condition that they don't vote for her again - ever! The voters would each walk away with $50 and the City would get rid of Spence-Jones once and for all. Meanwhile, these are some of the dopes giving to her campaign:
Gave $500 each:
Nora Rodriguez, Miami Beach
David Canepari, Palm Beach
Heni Koenigsberg, a homemaker Weston Newton, Mass.
(actually there is a glut of givers from Massachusetts totaling $4,000)
Boss Man Management, Inc., Miami Beach - LUCAS, THEODORE R JR
4 Star Group, Miami Beach - LUCAS, THEODORE R JR.
Slip and Slide Records, Miami Beach - LUCAS, THEODORE R JR
Biscayne Housing Group, Miami - DERAMON, GONZALO (MANAGER), COX, MICHAEL C (MANAGER)
Ambassaor Investment & Realty, LLC, Pembroke Pines - MGR. WOODS, CLARENCE E III,
WOODS, MARCHEL D
I wonder if the Koenigsberg above is related to Jay Koenigsberg from law firm: Isicoff, Ragatz & Koenigsberg?
11 comments:
Michelle Spence Jones is being a greedy little beetch and taking her district down with her. Anyone who truly cared for her district would step aside, let the election run its course, and if cleared in court, resume her seat. But not Michelle, she has to milk it. She is making it all about herself. Greedy!
Saddest part is that I would bet the farm that she will win, because playing the victim (not to mention the race card) plays well in peoria. Get ready for yet another election...
The residents of D5 should vote for anyone but Spence-Jones so that we all could save the additional $200,000 for the second special election, and get on with our lives!
If she is convicted I wonder if the sentence will be serious or once again be just a slap on the wrist! There is no mention in todays Herald story that a related story exists, concerning Rev. Gaston Smith's involvement and his conviction? Please see Dec. 11, 2009 Miami Herald "Miami pastor Gaston Smith guilty of looting county grant funds": www.miamiherald.com/1374/story/1377015.html
Did Crist cite any legal authority for him removing MSJ if she is re-elected? People with past indictments win eletions all the time and can't be removed. He could only remove her if another event happens such as convicion and exhaustion of appeals, which could take years.
Maybe the FBI should divert some resources from Rothstein who is already copping a plea and find out who is bundling cash for Spence Jones. Maybe they're people associated with John Henry: who knows, maybe the current Red Sox owner had some contingency arrangement with the current Marlin's owner that kicked in, once the stadium approval-- started under Henry's brief tenure as owner-- kicked in. I say, FBI: investigate them all down to their socks.
There is a saying "Who has the gold rules" The residents of District Five are not the only people that we should worry about. What about the wealthy donors and ask yourselves why are THEY helping her despite all these charges. What do they get out of it? The donors from MA are from the Gatehouse group and their subsidiaries. Gatehouse built a few affordable housing projects in the City. Again what do they get out of it?
Same thing in the previous election, you had 10 lawyers from one law firm giving contributions and the only thing connecting them is that one of them is a zoning lawyer in front of the City Commission regularly. They are the ones we should be worrying about.
Google "Heni Koenigsberg" and you see she is a professional political donor, often times giving with Mark Plonskier. Plonskier is a Boston, MA based head of the Gatehouse Group, a developer which also builds "affordable" housing in- surprise!- District 5 in Miami.
The group has a joint development with Biscayne Housing Group (who is also a donor on the above list), in which they were given sweatheart deals by the city commission to build 748 units, of which 621 were "affordable."
My guess is that Heni and others from Massachussets represent bundled gifts given by Plonskier to grease the wheels of city government. Ha, ha! Just kidding! They all gave because they believe that MSJ is doing the best job of any elected official in Mass. Um, I mean Miami.
Follow the money.
Supposedly Manny "I love concrete" Diaz is forcing his developer friends to give money to Spence-Jones. Someone should investigate the donors. Why would an out-of-town out-of-state donor give money to an indicted junior college drop-out?
Follow the money. Spence-Jones wants the $104,000 per year paycheck. She also wants the massive pension.
Who is donating money to her?
Spence-Jones has been rumored be crooked for years. Manny Diaz should have done his due diligence? Maybe Manny likes crooked pols?
Often times in public service, the public servant ignores the public and their individual struggle must become the burden of their constituents.
I have personally worked with a troubled public official, who stepped down, while still in the pinnacle of her distinguished public career. She felt that her personal life should not interfere with the service that she was obligated to provide her district.
I honestly believe it is time for the residents and voters of District 5 to not carry that personal burden of their elected representative. Their expectations should be for a servant who not only can devote fulltime to the position of City Commissioner, but take the time to comprehend the irregularities of the recent financial transfers within the city government, while still ensuring she dedicates her time and influence to improve the quality of life in Miami’s poorest neighborhood. The time needed to personally hear the constituents’ concerns for youth violence, concerns for park & recreation funding, concerns for housing foreclosures, concerns for lack of business development, concerns for the increased business closings in the district; hence the lack of jobs opportunities, concerns for transparency and ethics in local government, concerns for equality of resource allocation.
The people of district 5 can no longer afford to fight their Commissioner’s personal battles, they have so many of their own battles to confront.
After 20-30 years of corrupt elected officials District 5 deserves an honest hardworking businessman as commissioner. No more poverty pimps.
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